d'artiste Matte Painting: Digital Artists Master Class [Hardcover]

Dylan Cole (Author), Alp Altiner (Author), Daniel P. Wade (Editor), Chris Stoski (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: d'artiste | Publication Date: June 7, 2005

d'artiste Matte Painting presents the skills and techniques of leading Hollywood matte painters Alp Altiner, Dylan Cole, and Chris Stoski. The book takes readers through the matte painting techniques used to create breathtaking, photo-realistic sets and backdrops for films including Star Wars: Episode III—Revenge of the Sith and the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Ballistic Publishing (June 7, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1921002166
• ISBN-13: 978-1921002168
• Product Dimensions: 13.9 x 9.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #187,280 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Glossy, expensive, no content, August 30, 2009

By 

R Round "ST" (Maryland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: d'artiste Matte Painting: Digital Artists Master Class (Hardcover)

This big glossy, expensive book on matte painting using Photoshop is high on fancy images but low on instructions and details. I'm not surprised.....given that these guys are not going to give up their trade secrets to just anyone. Don't expect any detailed instructions on how they achieved those gorgeous special effects. All you get are high level comments from each artist on how these panoramas were created in Photoshop. Basic techniques and how to achieve the final details are literaly glossed over. Something as basic and essential as the cloning tool was not even mentioned. No mention of filters or custom Photoshop brushes used, nor Plug-Ins. Great coffee table picture book but a waste of money for me....

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Get the book, watch the video, October 29, 2010

By 

John Marc Green - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: d'artiste Matte Painting: Digital Artists Master Class (Hardcover)

This gorgeous book has a lot of really great material, but as several reviewers have mentioned, it does not have step-by-step tutorials on how to replicate their work. It also assumes a good deal of knowledge and skill on the part of the reader. Fortunately, one of the authors has also put out a DVD that you can order or download from the Gnomon Workshop, which does offer professional training for artists. It is expensive, but is designed for "beginner to intermediate" artists, and looks like a great place to start if you want to learn how to do matte paintings for productions. Look for the Matte Painting Production Techniques by Chris Stoski, an excellent companion video to go with the d'Artiste book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and informative, March 19, 2011

By 

Stop Motion Maniac "Elroy Jetson" (Toonville) - See all my reviews

This review is from: d'artiste Matte Painting: Digital Artists Master Class (Hardcover)

This is my first d'artiste matte book, and I'm planning on buying the next two I liked this so much. I do agree with some other reviews that point out that some aspects are not covered, but I would counter by saying that this book is not for the beginner. And maybe the publisher should indicate experience level needed. The parts of the tutorial that some feel have been left out are simply too basic to warrant real estate. If you are an advanced Photoshop user you will have no problem filling in the gaps, in my opinion. Dylan Cole's tutorial on the Tower of London was fantastic. And in addition to the tutorials you get lots of beautiful concept art from each artist. There aren't many books out there on matte painting and this is a must have for those interested in this subject.